Program Overview

What Is PAth to Literacy?

PAth to Literacy is a research-based, supplemental Tier 2 intervention program designed for preschool-age children. The interactive program includes short, scripted lessons and visual materials used together to develop phonological awareness and alphabet knowledge skills. With small groups of two to three children, a teacher or aide leads children to respond to a mixture of sounds, word parts, and pictures in a series of word games. Lessons last 10 to 15 minutes each and take place over 24 to 36 instructional days.

PAth to Literacy Is Easy to Implement and Fun for Children!

The PAth to Literacy program is designed to work in the preschool classroom by fitting into a typical preschool schedule and requiring minimal advanced preparation—all materials are provided, and the instruction is completely scripted, including gestures and feedback options. The program can be easily modified for use from Tier 2 small groups to more intensive Tier 3 sessions. Children enjoy the small-group interaction, the colorful pictures, and the game-based format.

Major Program Features

➤ A strong research-based approach promotes phonological awareness.
➤ Data-driven scope and sequence of lesson skills ensures adequate progress.
➤ Consistent format and instructional language makes the program easy to use for teachers.
➤ Small group size allows each child multiple opportunities to respond.
➤ Game-like format engages children and produces successful outcomes.
➤ Colorful cards with high-quality photographs illustrate target words.
➤ Scripted curriculum includes appropriate feedback for each student response.
➤ Lesson assessments provide frequent opportunities for progress monitoring.
➤ Multimedia program implementation modules provide strong teacher support.

Research Base for PAth to Literacy

Early awareness of word sounds and structures as well as alphabet knowledge are indicators of enduring success in reading. Practicing these skills simultaneously improves reading skills among prekindergarten (pre-K) children who demonstrate basic comprehension skills but lack phonological awareness skills. Thus, the research began with identifying the need and the target population and then focused on the instructional methods most successful for at-risk pre-K children.

PAth to Literacy Employs Best Practices to Accelerate Skills Development

Children who participate in PAth to Literacy improve their future reading skills by developing their awareness of the sounds and structures of words as they practice a series of carefully sequenced skills delivered through scripted curriculum. The script enables implementation with fidelity as teachers model correct pronunciation of individual speech sounds and sound clusters. All lessons include explicit instruction with multiple opportunities for children to respond and practice. Assessment tools allow teachers to monitor progress and make data-driven decisions.

Skills Best Practices

Blending compound words
Explicit teaching and modeling
Blending two-syllable words
Repeated practice opportunities
Segmenting compound words
Student engagement
Segmenting two-syllable words
Small-group intervention
Identifying word parts
Data-driven skill sequence
Identifying first sounds of simple words
Ongoing assessment
Identifying first sounds of complex words
Staff development

Implementing PAth to Literacy

An Easy Three-Step Model!

The PAth to Literacy program makes it easy for you to implement its Tier 2 supplemental intervention curriculum in three easy steps:

➊ Identify. ➋ Implement. ➌ Assess.

STEP 1 Identify.

Identify children who will benefit from using PAth to Literacy. The first step in implementing PAth to Literacy is to identify children in your classroom who will benefit from using the program.

STEP 2 Implement.

Implement the intervention in small groups. The PAth to Literacy intervention is delivered in 10- to 15-minute sessions.

STEP 3 Assess.

Administer progress-monitoring assessments. In PAth to Literacy, learning of instructional targets is assessed using curriculum-based measures and other progress-monitoring tools.

Key Program Elements

Important Components of PAth to Literacy Instruction

The PAth to Literacy program presents simple instruction in a game-like format to maximize skill acquisition.

➤ Scripted Instruction
Children listen to instruction based on a precise script read word-for-word by the instructor.

➤ Explicit Teaching and Modeling
Teachers accurately sound out words and sounds to model the skill being taught.

➤ Multiple Opportunities for Practice
The PAth to Literacy program promotes active participation in an enjoyable structure.

Instructional Content

Emphasis on Phonological Awareness

The PAth to Literacy program contains lessons designed to strengthen children’s phonological awareness, focusing on the following skills:
➤ Blending
➤ Segmenting
➤ First-part identification
➤ First-sound identification
➤ Letter-naming and letter-sound identification